Garment sleeve



. Sept. 10, 1946. w T. PREvlDl I w 2,407,383

GARMENT SLEEVE Vimm April 17, 1944 Patented Sept. l0, 1946 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE (Granted under the act of March 3, 1883, as amended April 30, 1928; 370 0. G. 757) 8 Claims.

The invention described herein, if patented, may be manufactured and used by or for the Governmentl for governmental purposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

The invention relates to new and useful irnprovements in garment sleeve construction.

The invention has for an object the provision of a novel shirt or blouse and sleeve construction wherein the sleeves are set into the body portion of the garment in such manner that a fold of sleeve material is provided at the top of the sleeve above the seam between the sleeve and the body portion at the arm p-it.

Still further the invention proposes to substitute for `the ordinary arrangement, in which the sleeve extends directly down from the seam under the wearers arm, a construction in which a portion of the sleeve is folded upwardly above the sleeve seam to provide an eiective elongation of the sleeve and body under the arm when the arm is raised.

A still further object; of the invention is. the provision of an upwardly projecting bias fold at the top of the sleeve under the arm which is an integral part of the sleeve and provides for freedom of motion of the wearers arm.

A further object of the. invention is to provide an arrangement whereby the sleeve and material forming the garment may be secured together without stitched pleats o-r any permanently secured fullness, the natural elasticity of the unseamed material forming a yielding fold at the under arm line between the sleeve and the garment body.

For further comprehension of the invention and of the objects and advantages thereof reference will be had to the following description and accompanying drawing and to the appended claims in which the various novel features of the invention are more particularly set forth.

In the accompanying drawing Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a garment having the sleeve constructed according to this invention as worn by a soldier.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the flattened sleeve blank,

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a modified form of sleeve sewed into tubular form and having part of the fold-forming portion turned down.

Fig. 4 is a perspective View of a portion of the finished garment as shown in Figs. l and 2, the shoulder portion being cut away to show the underarm fold of the sleeve.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the shoulder portion of the garment and sleeve.

Fig. 6 is a plan view of a portion of the sleeve blank according to the ni-odication disclosed in Fig. 3.

In Figs. l and 5 a garment constructed according to this invention is illustrated, the novel fold employed at the underarzn position being indicated at A. |The garment illustrated is a soldiers shirt or blouse having a body portion 9 and a sleeve Iii. The garment illustrated differs from the conventional coat or blouse in having the underarm portion of the sleeve cut to form an upwardly projecting fold above the position of the ordinary seam between the sleeve and garment body. Because of the peculiar conguration of the sleeve, the garment has a bias fold under the arm above the usual sleeve seam, which is unfolded and stretched in conformity with the wearers body and arm as he reaches upwardly or outwardly.

The sleeve lo as provided in this invention has a body portion with a normally curved shoulder portion II. At the lower sloped portions of the top of the sleeve an extension is provided on each side of the sleeve blank designed to form a fold lying above the line, shown by dots in Fig. 2, at which the sleeve would normally terminate. At the left of the sleeve as shown in Fig. 2, an extension I2 curves outwardly away from the shoulder curve II to form an extension which includes a portion lying between the edge and the fold line a-band an equivalent portion lying between the edge fold line a-b and the dotted line c--d, which marks the usual sleeve top line. At the right of the blank an extension I3 is provided similar to the extension I2 in coniiguration though somewhat wider, and also designed to form an underarm fold having one thickness composed of the area between the edge and the fold line Z-m and the other oi the area between the fold line Z-m and the dotted line n-o which represents the usual sleeve top line. Each extension I2, I3 has a portion extending beyond the normal side edges Il! and I 5 of the sleeve blank, as shown at I6 and I'I.

In its flattened form the sleeve blank has its top line in three scallops with identations` I3 and I9 between them. The width of the sleeve between the indentations I8 and i9 is that of an ordinary sleeve, and the sleeve is adapted to be sewed into a normal armhole 20, the surplus material formed above the lines c-d and n--o forming an upwardly projecting fold when the free edges of the extensions !2 and I3 are sewed into .the arrnhole. The indentations 2l and 22 formed at the fold line of the extensions I2 and I3 give the underarm seamthe form of a dart throughout the part of said seam which falls Within the extensions and cooperate with the indentations i8 and I9 to draw surplus material at the top of the sleeve upwardly into a bias fold when the finished garment is in unstressed position, as shown at A in Figs. 4 and 5.

When this sleeve is seamed into its tubular form and set into the armhole 26 of the main body portion of the garment, the seam between the edges of the portions l l, l2 and I3 and the armhole 26 appears to be merely a conventional armhole seam. However, the fact that a bias fold of the material of the sleeve is drawn up above the normal underarm position of the garment having an armhole of the conventional size, as shown at A in Figs. 4 and 5, produces new and greatly im proved results. This construction has the advantage of eliminating the bulkiness produced when a sleeve that is merely larger at the top than normal is used or when pleats are provided at the back or underarm of the garment body. The improved garment according to this invention has an underarm portion which will lie in a position under the arm when the wearers arm is down, but which will stretch freely outward when the wearers arm is extended, as in Fig. 1. It insures a close yielding fit which permits an overcoat or other over-garment to be worn without inducing tightness, drawing or wear on the garment sleeve. At the same time it prevents the usual stretching of the entire garment when the wearer stretches his arms which ordinarily results in a feeling of discomfort and connement, besides pulling the garment upwardly at the Waist or breaking the stitches of the sleeve seam, a mishap which results in further unraveling of the seamv and the formation of large gap between the sleeve and the body of the garment.

The modiiication shown in Figure 3 employs a fold having a similar structure and function but diiering from the construction shown in Figs. 2 and 4 in certain particulars. The sleeve A is cut with an outwardly curving line 23 joining the extensions, l2' and i3' to the side edges of the sleeve, as shown in Fig. 6. The necessary constriction 4to establish the fold line of the extension and hold the folded extension upward in proper position is produced by providing an elastic enclosed in a casing 24 extending across the extension and secured at the ends 25, the elastic contracting the fold to about the same extent as the indentations 2l and 22 in the iirst embodiment. v

While I have shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, it is understood that I do not limit myself to the precise construction herein disclosed and the right is reserved to change the precise conguration of the parts and modifications coming within the scope o1 the invention as denned in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by United States Letters Patent is:

l. A garment sleeve having a single seam and having a folded underarm extension comprising a portion of the sleeve on each side of the seam extending above the normal top line of the sleeve and folded back on itself to substantially the CTI normal top line of the sleeve, the fold-forming portions beingY indented at their seam edges at the fold line, whereby the fold is automatically formed at the desired point by the tension produced by the indentations when the side edges of the sleeves and extended portions are seamed together,

2. A blank for garment sleeves including a normal, curved shoulder portion, a projection at each side of the shoulder portion extending upwardly and laterally beyond the normal lines of a sleeve blank, the upper edges of said projections being curved and cooperating with the shoulder portion to form indentations, and the side portions of the projections cooperating with side edges of the blank to form additional indentations.

3. A blank for garment sleeves including a normal, curved shoulder portion, a projection at each side of the shoulder portion extending upwardlf,7 and laterally beyond the normal lines of a sleeve blank, the upper edges of said projections being curved and cooperating with the shoulder portion to form indentations, and each lateral portion terminating in an upwardly and outwardly inclined edge.

4. A garment comprising a body portion pro vided with armholes of normal shape and dimensions, and a sleeve for each arrnhole, each sleeve being of normal shape and dimensions except for an extension at the upper end of the undersleeve portion of the sleeve, a transverse fold in said extension, a line oi stitching securing the free end of the extension to the lower edge of the` normal armhole, and means within the confines of the extension for shortening the fold line and normally maintaining the fold in its folded condition.

5. A garment sleeve having an under-arm por tion and an over-arm portion, a fold-forming extension joined to the under-arm portion, said extension having a dart extending across the fold, the widest portion of the dart being at the fold line.

5l. A garment sleeve having an under-arm portion and an over-arm portion, a fold-forming extension joined to the under--arm portion, said extension having an elastic along the fold only for shortening the fold line and normally maintaining the fold in its folded condition.

7. A garment sleeve having a fold-forming extension on its under-arm portion, said extension being divided in a direction lengthwise of said sleeve and having a dart securing the edges of the divided portions together, one of said edges being inout to form an obtuse angle having its apex at the fold line of the extension, the apex of the angle lying farther from the opposite point on the other edge than any other pair of opposite points on the two edges when the edges are opposed latvvise.

8. A garment sleeve having an extension at the upper end of the underarm portion of the sleeve, a transverse fold in said extension, and means within the conlnes of the extension for shortening the fold line and normally maintaining the fold in its folded condition.

WILLIAM T. PREVIDI. 

